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jfoiir Crue Stories of 
Life and 
Hdwnture 



BY 



JBSSIK R. SMCITH 



New York 
WILLIAM BEVERLEY HARISON 

3 AND 5 West i8th Street 
1897 

L. 



TWO COPIES RECEIVED 




\ t— » r^ 



\ ^ . 



fin c. 



^' 



5244 



Copyright, 1897, 

By WILLIAM BEVERLEY HARISON, 

New York. 



TO TEACHERS 



This book is to be read by children^ not 
to them. 

Fifty years ago, the only tool used by the 
teacher in teaching reading was the school 
lesson-book. Since that time, the problem, 
both in means and purpose, has greatly 
broadened. The modern teacher has several 
ends in view and finds tise for a variety of 
tools. In the first preliminary steps of 
teaching technique, the process is probably a 
m,ore or less mechanical one^ and the teacher 
still finds 7ise for the reading-book. But 
once this initiation is accomplished, she fi7ids 
herself in need of a variety of different 



iv PREFACE 

books. She wants stories of intrinsic inter- 
est to children, zvhich may be either read or 
related, for the purpose of introducing the 
children to literature, myth, history, and 
science. When he has reached his fifth 
school year, and generally not until then, 
under present rates of progress, the child 
is able to read such stories for himself. 
To meet this need, the market now offers a 
liberal assorttnent of serviceable books. But 
between the first-year period and this later 
period, there exists at present a gap, both 
i7i the child's ability to read and in the mar- 
ket supply of books which he can read. The 
child, during these years, is hungering for 
stories, especially for ''true'' stories, and 
some mothers and teachers try to meet the 
demajzd by reading and telling. This is 
well and good, but it is clear that if this 

4 



PREFACE V 

inborn craving could be met by books, framed 
in language of such limited vocabulary and 
construction that the child in the second and 
third years of school could ttnderstand, and 
of such intrinsic interest that his attention 
would constantly be invited to the story 
rather thaii to the form of print, a valuable 
tool would be offered. Rapidity in learning 
to read depends upon the quantity of 
77iaterial read and upon the quickness with 
which the child'' s attention shall be drawn 
to the substance by which the process is made 
more or less a7i unconsciozis one. The mar- 
ket supply of S2ich books is painfully weak. 
Those that zve have are chiefly the result of 
the attempt of some adult to project himself 
into the mind and vocabulary of a child, and 
such attempts have not beefi fruitful of 
much sticcess. 



Vl PREFACE 

This book is designed to meet this end. It 
is practically written by children. Miss 
Smith's purpose has been that of a faithful 
chronicler of children's language^ mode of 
expression, and the lines of their plot inter- 
est. In this purpose she has had the advan- 
tage of a natural sympathy and instinctive 
" rapport " with the child mind and impulses, 
that, so far as my experience speaks, few 
persons possess. The method of the book's 
production has been as follows : she first re- 
lated to her pupils, who were from seven to 
nine years of age, the story of the hero in 
the best form her instincts could dictate. 
Some days later, after the story, its form 
of presentation, and language have somewhat 
''settled" in the children's minds, she has 
called for reproductions, both oral and in 
written form, allowing the pupils also to 

6 



PREFACE vH 

illustrate their written work in any way 
they pleased. She has then made these 
reproductions the material for most careful 
study as to essential elements of plot^ salient 
points of interest, and especially the words 
and forms of expression used by the chil- 
dren. By this means the story has been 
reconstructed. Portions over which the 
children love to liiiger are brought out to the 
fullest extent. Their words and forms of 
language, within the limit of grammatical 
usage, are followed scrupulously. Much 
care has bee7i used to keep the stories within 
a limited vocabulary. Less than 750 differ- 
ent words are used in the entire series, and 
these, excepting the necessary geographical 
names, are all of the commonest tise among 
childreft. 

The practical idea upon which the plan 



viii PREFACE 

is based is, therefore, that if there are 
points of interest a7id description which 
particularly and uniquely attract children, 
these will be the points which will be most 
forcibly impressed icpoji children's minds 
when they hear the story related ; and fur- 
ther, of these points, the strongest will be the 
ones best remembered when the children 
reproduce the story. By using a compara- 
tively large number of these reproductions, 
Miss Smith has gleaned, the common poiiits 
of interest as well as the co7nmon forms 
of expression. The method is therefore 
unique. Without attempting to formulate 
any principles or a philosophy of children s 
interests. Miss Smith has simply sought to 
draw the material froTn the child himself. 
These stories, in typewrittefi and mi77ieo- 
graphed form, were used i7i the schools of 

8 



PREFACE ix 

Santa Rosa, Cal., for many months, and in 
their present form are the products of 
much revision. Speaking from, results upon 
children which I have personally witnessed, 
and from the experience of superintendents 
and teachers of other schools where the 
Story of Washington ifi published form has 
been extensively used, it may safely be said 
that i7i these stories there is a drawing 
power for the child that is assurance that 
a resonant chord in the child 7iature has 
been struck. 

FREDERICK BURK. 



STORY OF COLUMBUS 



u 



THE BOY ON SHORE 



LONG ago there lived a little boy. His 
■* name was Christopher Columbus. 
His home was in Genoa, a city in Italy. 
Genoa is by the sea. 

Columbus loved the sea. Every day he 
went down to the shore. There he could 
watch the ships come in and sail away. 

These ships went to far-away lands. The 
sailors used to tell Columbus stories about 
these lands. 

One day, when he was six years old, his 
mother sent him down-town. She told him 
not to stay long. 

But he was gone all day. Then his 
father went to find him. 

No one had seen Columbus. 



13 



2 COLUMBUS 

His poor mother cried and cried. She 
said : " Our boy is lost. He will never, 
never come back." 

But by-and-by Columbus came home. 
His mother ran to meet him. 

She said : " Where have you been all 
day? We have looked everywhere for you." 

"Oh, just down to the wharf," said 
Columbus. " I saw a big ship come in. 
The sailors told me so many stories that I 
forgot to come home." 

"What did they tell you?" asked his 
mother. 

"They told me about an island. It is 
away out in the ocean. They said the 
shore was all covered with gold." 

Columbus did not like to be a little boy. 
He wanted to be big, and strong, and old. 

"Then," he said, "I will be a sailor. 

14 



COLUMBUS 3 

I will go to this island and bring home 
gold." 

His father said : " You must go away to 
school. There you can study about the 
stars. You must learn to draw maps, too. 
Then you can be a sailor." 

This made Columbus very happy. He 
ran down to the wharf, singing : " I'm going 
to be a sailor ! I am going to be a sailor ! " 

He came home from school when he was 
fourteen years old. Then he went to live 
on the sea. When he grew to be a man he 
was a sea-captain. 



16 



THE ROBBERS 



eOLUMBUS sailed all along the coast. 
He went as far north as England. 

Once, on his way home, he ran into some 
sea-robbers. They had a hard fight. It 
lasted all one day and night. Then the 
robbers set his ships on fire. 

Columbus was the first to see the fire. 
He cried to his men : "Quick! quick! Get 
into the little boats. Make for the shore." 

He was the last one to leave. All the 
boats were full. So he took an oar and 
jumped into the water. He swam to the 
shore. The shore was six miles away. 

The people then did not know that the 
world is round. They thought that it was 
flat. They said a big giant held it upon his 



16 



COLUMBUS 5 

back. Columbus did not believe that story. 
He used to study and think about the 
world. He said he knew it was round. 

The people laughed at him. Columbus 
said he could sail west across the ocean. 
Then he would come to India. 

India was a rich country far away. The 
people used to send there to get gold, silks, 
pearls, and spices. It took them a long 
time to go there. They had to cross a big 
desert. The sand and the sky were all they 
could see. The sun was very hot on the 
desert. Sometimes they would not find any 
water for days. 

The people had no cars then, so they 
rode camels when they went to India. It 
was too long and hard a trip for horses. 

One time the kingf sent out some men to 
India. They got gold and silk for him ; 



6 COLUMBUS 

then they started back. When they were 
nearly home they came to some trees. A 
spring of water was near them. 

" This is a good place," said the men ; 
" let us camp here to-night." 

They were tired, and were soon fast asleep. 

By-and-by some robbers came along. 

They said: " See that gold and silk. Let 
us take it." 

Just then one of the men woke up. He 
saw the stranore men. 

" What do you want ? " he asked. 

" Give us that gold," said the robbers. 

" No, I won't," said the man. "It belongs 
to the kinof." 

"We don't care," said the robbers, "we 
will take it anyway." 

This frightened the man. He called to 
the others: "Robbers ! Robbers! Wake up!" 

18 



COLUMBUS 7 

The men jumped up. They fought the 
robbers a long time ; but the robbers ran 
away with all the money and silk. 

" Now, what shall we do ?" said the men. 

" Let us go back for more gold and silk," 
said one. 

" No," said the others, "let us go and tell 
the king." 

The king was angry, and sent for his wise 
men. He told them how his men had been 
robbed. He wanted to find the robbers. 

The wise men said : " It is of no use. We 
cannot find the robbers. Let us send the 
men for more gold." 

" No," said the men, " we do not want to 
go. The way is too long. The robbers 
may come again." 

So the men went home. The king said 
he would find a new way to India. 

19 



COLUMBUS VISITS KING JOHN 



ONE day Columbus heard the story of 
the robbers. So he went to King 
John. King John was king of Portugal. 

Columbus said to King John : " I am sure 
the world is round. If I had some ships, I 
would sail around the world across the 
ocean. That would make a short way to 
India. The robbers then could not rob 
your men of their gold and silks." 

Columbus was too poor to buy ships of 
his own. He wanted King John to buy 
them for him. 

The king again called his wise men. He 
told them about Columbus. 

They said : " No, do not help him. He is 
crazy." 

20 



COLUMBUS 9 

But the king said : " Columbus may 
be right. I will ask him his plans. Then 
I will send out ships of my own. If 
I find any new lands, they will belong to 
me." 

So Columbus showed him his plans and 
maps. He told the king about the world, 
and how to sail around it. 

Then the king said : " No, Columbus, I 
will not help you." 

Poor Columbus went away. Then the 
king sent out a ship of his own. 

By-and-by a big storm came up. The 
waves dashed and the winds blew. 

The sailors were frightened. 

" We are lost ! We are lost ! " they 
cried. "This is the edge of the sea. We 
will soon fall over." 

So they turned around and went back. 

21 



lO' COLUMBUS 

They told King John there were no lands in 
the west. 

The king then told Columbus the world 
was not round. 

" How do you know ?" asked Columbus. 

" I sent out a ship," said the king, " and 
the sailors could find no land." 

This made Columbus very angry. He 
took his little boy, Diego, and went away 
from King John and Portugal. 



flS: 



THE GOOD QUEEN 



eOLUMBUS went to Spain. He asked 
the king and queen there to help him. 

They said : " Wait, and we will send for 
our wise men." 

The wise men came, and Columbus told 
them his story. 

They said : " Hear him ! Hear him ! He 
is crazy. He says the world is round. We 
all know it is flat." 

They laughed and laughed at him. 

"Well," said one of the wise men, "let 
him sail west. When he comes to the edge 
of the great sea he will fall over. Then we 
will be rid of him." 

The king told Columbus to wait. 

He waited seven long years. 



23 



12 COLUMBUS 

Then the king said: " I will not help you. 
I do not believe your story." 

Poor Columbus was so sad. He was now 
an old man. His hair was snow-white. 

He said to little Diego : " Come, my boy. 
We will find another king. We will go to 
France." 

They set out to walk. It was a long, long 
way. The road was hot and dusty. 

Poor little Diego was so tired, but he was 
too brave to cry. 

By-and-by they came to a large stone 
house. Some good men lived there. 

Columbus knocked at the gate, and said : 
" Good father, my little boy, Diego, is very 
hungry. Will you give him a cup of water 
and a piece of bread ? " 

"Yes," said the good man. "Come in 
and rest a while." 

»4 



COLUMBUS 13 

The good man was very kind to Columbus 
and Diego. He gave them something to 
eat. Then Httle Diego went to sleep. 

The good father asked Columbus where 
he was going. 

Then Columbus began to talk about the 
far-away lands. He took out his maps and 
charts. He showed the good father how 
one might sail around the world to India. 
He said no one would help him. 

The good man said : " Do not go yet. 
Rest here a while. I know the good queen 
well. I will write and ask her to help you." 

So Columbus waited. In a few days the 
queen's letter came. 

It said : " Send Columbus to me." 

This made Columbus very happy. Once 
more he went to see the king and queen of 
Spain. 

85 



14 COLUMBUS 

This time they listened to him. Then the 
king said : "We cannot help you. We have 
no money." 

Poor Columbus went away very sad. 

But some one ran after him, and called : 
" Columbus, come back. The queen wants 
you." 

So Columbus went back. The queen 
said : "You shall have the money. I will 
sell my gold rings and chains. Then I will 
buy you ships." 

Now Columbus and Diego were happy. 
They thought their troubles were over. But 
they were not. 

Columbus had ships. But it took a long 
time to find sailors. Men were afraid to go 
so far out on the ocean. 



S8 



ACROSS THE OCEAN 



^■^XNE bright, sunny day, Columbus set 
^*^ sail. He was very happy. He was 
going to find the way around the world. 
Little Diego stayed in Spain. The good 
queen kept him. 

The ships sailed west a great many days. 
The sea and sky grew dark. This made 
the sailors more and more afraid. They 
became angry, and said to Columbus : 
** Take us home, or we will throw you into 
the sea." 

Columbus said: " Wait a little longer. 
We will soon see land again." 

Days went by, and still no land was seen. 
Every night Columbus watched the stars. 
They could help him find the way. 



27 



i6 COLUMBUS 

The sailors were so angry ! They wanted 
to kill Columbus. 

So he said: "If we do not see land in 
three days, we will go back to Spain." 

That very day some land-birds flew on 
the ship. The next day the ships passed 
some green leaves floating in the water. 

Then they knew land must be near. 

But still no land could be seen. 

Just at sunset, Columbus saw a dark spot 
far away. The sailors saw it, too. 

" Land ! Land ! " they cried. 

No one slept that night. The sky was 
bright with stars. Every one watched the 
little spot. 

The next morning they were very near 
the land. They could see pretty birds, 
trees, and flowers. Little children were 
at play on the beach. Men with bows 

28 



COLUMBUS 17 

and arrows were running up and down the 
shore. 

Columbus took a Httle boat and went on 
the land. Some of the sailors went with 
him. He put up the flag of Spain. 



so 



THE RED MEN 



^ I ^HE people on the land looked strange. 

' They had long black hair and red 
skin. Some of them had their faces painted. 
The women wore rings in their noses. They 
had chains around their ankles. 

Columbus thought they were in India. 
He called these red men Indians. 

The Indians thought the ships were big 
birds with white wings. They thought Colum- 
bus and the sailors were children from the sky. 

They ran up to Columbus, and, in their 
way, said : " Welcome, white men." 

They were very kind to Columbus. They 
gave him their gold rings and other pretty 
things. They made him a bed of green 

80 



COLUMBUS 19 

/eaves. Then they made their children kiss 
the white men. 

Columbus gave the Indians glass beads, 
little bells, and red caps. This made them 
very happy. They jumped up and down 
» and danced around him. 

The Indians had never seen a looking- 

o 

glass. One day a sailor gave one to an In- 
dian girl. She looked at it and saw her own 
face. The poor girl was so frightened ! 
She threw it down and ran away. She hid 
in her wigwam all day. 

One of the Indians wanted a bell to hang 
in his nose. Some of the sailors thought 
they would have some fun with him. They 
told him to come on the ship. Then they 
threw him into the sea. 

Columbus saw them, and was angry. He 
sent out a boat for the Indian. When the 



20 COLUMBUS 

Indian was brought back, Columbus put a 
red cap on his head and beads on his arms. 
Little bells were hung to his nose and ears. 
Brass rings were put on his fingers. Then 
Columbus sent him home. 

The Indian was so happy. He marched 
up and down the shore. He wanted to show 
the other Indians how grand he was. 

Columbus looked everywhere for gold. He 
did not find any. He found out that the land 
was a small island. The Indians told him 
there was a bigger land not very far away. 

Soon Columbus sailed back to Spain. He 
took with him some of the birds, fruit, flow- 
ers, and Indians. He wanted to show them 
to the king and queen. 



THE QUEEN'S PARTY 



" I ^HE people of Spain were very glad to 

■ see Columbus again : They had a big 
parade when he came back. First came the 
Indians. They wore bright feathers in 
their hair. Their faces were painted red 
and black. 

Then came the birds, fruit, and flowers. 
Next was Columbus. He rode on a big black 
horse. Little Diego walked at the head of 
the horse. 

Every one was so happy ! They rang the 
bells, and built big bonfires. 

The king and queen gave Columbus a 
party. They invited all the wise men to 
come and hear him tell about the new land. 

When they were at the table, one of the 
wise men said : " Oh, well, Columbus, if you 



33 



22 COLUMBUS 

had not found this new land, some one else 
would." 

Columbus said: "Can you make an egg 
stand up on end ?" 

The wise man tried it. Then he passed 
it to the next wise man. No one could 
make the egg stand up. 

Then Columbus took the egrcy. He broke 
the shell a little. Then it stood up very 
straight on end. 

The wise men said : " Oh, any one can do 
that." 

"Yes," said Columbus, "after I have 
shown him how." 

Then he said : " Any one can find the new 
land now. I have shown you the way." 

Columbus stayed in Spain only a little 
while. Then he set sail for the new land 
again. 

34 



DEATH OF COLUMBUS 



" I ^HE second time Columbus sailed to 
' the new land, nearly every one wanted 
to go with him. The people thought they 
would find gold and come home rich. 
They did not find any gold. This made 
them very angry. On their way home they 
put chains on Columbus, and were very 
cruel to him. 

When the ship reached Spain, the queen 
was very kind to Columbus. She had the 
chains taken off. 

Columbus went to the new land twice 
after this. The last time he was put in 
chains again. Then these cruel men sent 
him home in chains. This time he had no 



35 



24 COLUMBUS 

friends to help him. The good queen was 
dead. 

Columbus was now too old to work. 
Soon he grew very poor. 

When he was sick, he said : " Do not cry 
for me ; I do not wish to live." 

Day by day he grew worse. In a little 
while the kind old man was dead. 

They buried him in Spain, Many years 
after he was buried on the island which he 
found. 

Columbus did not find a short way to 
India. He did something better. He found 
our own land, 

AMERICA 



STORY OF 
CAPTAIN JOHN SMITH 



87 



EARLY ADVENTURES 



ONCE there was a little boy named 
John Smith. He lived in England. 

John was a lazy boy. He liked to play 
better than to study. So he went to school 
only a little while. 

He wanted to go to sea. He thought it 
would be fine fun to be out on the ocean on 
a big ship. 

But his father said : " John, you won't like 
the sea. The work on a ship is very hard." 

John thought that he knew better than 
his father. So he said to himself, " I will 
sell my books and satchel. Then I will go 
away to sea." 

Just then his father died. John stayed at 
home with his mother. By-and-by he went 



2 CAPTAIN JOHN SMITH 

to work in a store. He did not like it, and 
one day he went to sea. 

At first he thought it was fine fun. Then 
a big storm came up. The wind blew, and 
the sails were torn. 

The sailors did not like John, so they said : 
"See that boy. He has brought us bad 
luck. Let us get rid of him." 

So they threw him into the sea. It was not 
very far out, and John swam to the shore. 
He sat down on the ground. He looked 
at his clothes. They were all wet, and 
his hat was pfone. He shook his head 
and said : " I do not like the sea. I will be 
a soldier." 

He went to fight the Turks. One day he 
killed three of them in a battle. Then he 
was taken prisoner. The Turks were very 
cruel to him. They put a very heavy iron 

40 



CAPTAIN JOHN SMITH 3 

collar around his neck. He was given to one 
of the Turks as a slave. 

The Turk sent him out into the field to 
thresh wheat. He used a big wooden bat 
like a ball-club. 

One day poor John was very tired. He sat 
down to rest. Just then his master rode up 
on his horse. He saw John was not at work. 

He said: "Get up, you lazy fellow!" 
Then he struck him with his whip. 

This made Smith very angry. He hit the 
Turk on the head, and killed him. " Now," 
said Smith, " I must run. They will kill me 
if they catch me." 

He jumped on the horse and rode into 
the woods. He hid in the daytime. When 
it was dark he went on as fast as he could. 
After many days he got back to his old home 
in England. 

41 



VOYAGE TO AMERICA 



r^ VERY one was talking about America. 
Three ships were just ready to sail to 
the new land. 

Smith said he would go with them. It 
was winter-time, and they were out in many 
storms. For days they could not see the 
sun. The clouds grew darker and darker. 
The rain came down harder and harder. 

By-and-by the rain stopped. The sun 
came out, and there was the land. They 
could see a river, too. 

The ships sailed into this river. Every 
one was happy. They could see tall trees, 
pretty flowers, and green hills. They could 
hear the birds singing. 

The people said : " This is a pretty place. 
Let us land here." 



42 



CAPTAIN JOHN SMITH 5 

The king of England was named James. 
So they called the river James, and the place 
Jamestown. 

When they landed they saw a great many 
Indians. They were hiding behind the 
trees. 

When they saw the white men they shot 
their arrows at them. Then they started 
after them with their war-clubs. The white 
people thought they would all be killed. 

Just then one of the men on the ship fired 
a gun at the Indians. The shot struck a 
tree. Some of the branches fell on the 
Indians' heads. This frightened them so 
that they ran away to the woods. 

The Indians had never seen any white 

people before. It was the first time they 

had ever heard a gun fired. 

After a few days, Smith said, " We will 

43 



6 CAPTAIN JOHN SMITH 

make our home here. Let us plant corn 
and build houses." 

At first the men worked hard. They cut 
down trees and built houses. Then they 
cleared off the ground to plant corn. By- 
and-by they grew tired of this. They said : 
"We will not work any more. We will hunt 
for gold. Then we will go back to England." 

Day after day the men set out with their 
shovels. They dug and dug, but did not find 
any gold. 

It was winter. The days and nights were 
cold. There were not enough houses to 
live in. Nearly all of the food was 
gone. The people thought they would all 
starve. 

The Indians had great fields of corn. 
Smith said that he would try to get some 
for the people. 

44 



CAPTAIN JOHN SMITH 7 

He took some beads, and went up the 
river in his boat. 

He said to the chief : " My people are 
starving. Will you sell us some corn ?" 

But the chief shook his head. 

Then Smith said : " Look here. I have 
something to show you." 

He held out a handful of beads. 

" Oh, what are they?" asked the chief. 

" They are beads," said Smith. " You 
put them on a string, and wear them around 
your neck." 

" I want them," said the chief. " Give 
me some." 

" Well," said Smith, "you give me some 
corn. Then I will give you some beads." 

The chief gave him a whole boat-load of 

corn. Smith gave him just a handful of 

beads. 

45 



8 CAPTAiN JOHN SMITH 

The chief was so happy. He danced all 
around Smith. He looked at the beads, one 
by one. 

When Smith got back to his people, he 
said : " I have some corn for you. But if 
you do not work, I will not give you any." 

This made the men angry. They went 
to work, but they called Smith some bad 
names. 

Smith said to them : " You must not call 
me bad names. If you do I will pour cold 
water down your backs." 

The men soon stopped. They didn't 
want the cold water. 



46 



CHASED B^" INDL=^JN[S 



" 1 ^HE people thought America was only a 
' little piece of land. The king of Eng- 
land had told them to find the Pacific Ocean 
if they could. They thought they might find 
the short way to India, too. 

So one day Smith set sail up the river. 
He did not know the ocean was miles and 
miles away. He went up the river as far as 
he could in his ship. Then he took two men 
and went on in a boat. 

After a while he went on the shore to shoot 
some game. He left the two men in the boat. 

Soon a great many Indians came upon the 
men, and killed them with their arrows. 

They saw Smith's footprints, and started 

47 



lo CAPTAIN JOHN SMITH 

after him. When they say him, the chief 
cried : " Shoot him. Kill him." 

The Indians let their arrows fly. 

No one hit him. 

Smith shot off his gun as fast as he could. 

All this time he was walking backward. 
He could not see where he was going. He 
stepped into a soft place, and sank to his 
knees. 

He tried hard to get out. But he went 
down deeper and deeper. Soon he was up 
to his waist in the mud. Now he could not 
fight or run. 

The arrows were flying all about him. 

He held out his hands to the Indians, but 
they would not come near him. They were 
afraid of the gun. Then he threw away the 
gun. So the Indians pulled him out. 

Smith made friends with the Indians. He 

48 



CAPTAIN JOHN SMITH ii 

gave them a compass, and told them how to 
use it. They all wanted to see the white 
man. So six big Indians led him through 
the villaores. 

The Indians were afraid of him. He told 
them that the world was round, and that it 
was the same sun that came up every day. 
The Indians thought that at night the sun 
went into the sea, and that a new sun came 
up next day. 

Sometimes they danced to please him. 
Then they would dance around him and yell 
to frighten him. 



49 



THE TALKING CHIP 



^^NE day Smith wrote a letter on a chip. 
^^ He sent it to Jamestown by the In- 
dians. When he gave it to them, he said: "Go 
to Jamestown, and give this to the white 
men. It will tell them to show you a grind- 
stone and a gun that are under a tree. The 
gun will make a loud noise like thunder. They 
will give you some bells and red caps too." 

"That is not so," said the Indians. "You 
can't make a chip talk." 

" Do as I tell you," said Smith, " and you 
will see." 

So the Indians went to Jamestown. They 
gave the chip to the white men. 

The white men took them and showed 
them a grindstone and the gun under the 

60 



CAPTAIN JOHN SMITH 13 

tree. Then one of the white men shot the 
gun off. The noise was Hke thunder. Then 
the white men gave the Indians some bells 
and red caps. 

" Who told you to do all this and to give 
us these things ?" 

"John Smith," said the men. 

" No, no," said the Indian, " it was not 
Smith. It must have been the chip. I 
listened, but I could not hear it talk." 

The white men laughed. They said : 
'* Smith talked to the chip. Then it toM us 
what he said." The Indians did not know 
what to think of it. They said : " Let us 
go back. We must kill John Smith. He 
can make chips talk." 

" No," said one, " let us take him to our 
great chief." 

51 



THE STORY OF POCAHONTAS 



^^QOWHATAN was the great chief of all 
* the Indians. He sat on a wooden throne. 
He wore a long robe of skins. His crown 
was of long bright feathers. Indians stood all 
around him. The men had their faces painted. 
The women wore rings in their noses. 

When Smith was led in, they all yelled. 
One who seemed to be queen came and 
washed his feet. She wiped them with 
feathers. 

She was Pocahontas, the chief's little 
daughter. 

Powhatan talked to Smith a long time. 
Then he said : 

" The white man must die. He may do 
us great harm." 

62 



CAPTAIN JOHN SMITH 15 

Poor Pocahontas felt very sad. She did 
not want Smith to die. 

At last the day came. Two large stones 
were put in front of Powhatan. 

Smith's hands and legs were tied. His 
head was laid upon the stone. 

The great club was lifted to strike. 

Just then they heard a girl scream. 

Powhatan started up. The Indians 
stopped their yelling. They all listened. 

Poor Pocahontas ran through the crowd. 
She threw her arms over Smith's head. 

" Kill me ! Kill me !" she cried. " You 
shall not kill him." 

At first Powhatan was angry ; but he loved 
his little orirl. So he said : " Let him live." 

Powhatan kept Smith some days. 

" He said : " I will frighten him. Then he 

will not hurt us." 

53 



i6 CAPTAIN JOHN SMITH 

He had two hundred Indians yell and 
dance around Smith. Then Powhatan said : 

*' We are now friends. Go back to James- 
town. Send me two guns and a grindstone. 
I will give you much land. I will love you 
as my own son." 

Smith did not believe him. He thought 
they would kill him. But he got safely back 
to Jamestown. 

He sent the guns. The grindstones were 
so heavy the Indians could not carry them. 
Smith also gave them some little bells. He 
sent Pocahontas a long string of beads and 
a looking-glass. He never forgot the little 
girl who saved his life. 

Pocahontas was a good friend to the white 
people. One time she heard the Indians 
were going to fight them. That night she 
walked to Jamestown to tell Smith. 



54 



CAPTAIN JOHN SMITH 17 

It was very dark and stormy. She went 
through the woods all alone, but she was not 
afraid. So the white people were ready 
when the Indians came, and drove them 
away. 

All one winter Pocahontas carried food to 
the white people. Many times the ground 
was covered with snow and ice, but the 
brave girl went just the same. 



55 



POWHATAN^S PRESENTS 



" I ^HE people in England said : '* We will 
' send Powhatan some presents. Then 
he will be kind to the people at Jamestown." 
By the next ship they sent him a crown, a 
red robe, a wash-pan, and a bedstead. 

Now Powhatan felt very proud. He 
would not sell the white people any more 
corn. The people were afraid they would 
starve. But Smith said : " Never mind, I 
will get you some corn." 

He took some blue beads and went to see 
Powhatan. 

He said: "How do you do, Powhatan? 
I have come to buy some corn." 

" But I won't sell you any," said Powhatan. 

"Why, how is that?" said Smith. 



56 



CAPTAIN JOHN SMITH 19 

" Well," said Powhatan, " see that wash- 
pan and bedstead ? They are mine. And I 
have a new crown that is all gold. Now I am 
a great chief. I will not sell any more corn." 

" All right," said Smith. " Oh, I forgot, 
did you see these beads ? " 

" Give me some ! give me some !" said 
Powhatan. 

" No," said Smith, " only a great prince 
can wear them. They are made out of some- 
thing like the sky." 

Powhatan said : " I am a great prince. 
You must give me some." 

But Smith said, " No." 

By-and-by Powhatan said : "If you will 
give me some of them, I will give you corn." 
This made Smith very happy. He took 
back plenty of corn for his people. 



57 



SHOOTING AT THE HAT 



I^ MITH tried again to find the Pacific 
'^^ Ocean. On his way north a great 
storm came up. The sails were all torn. 

" What shall we do ! what shall we do ! " 
cried the sailors. 

" Be brave, my men," said Smith. " vVe 
can fix the sail." 

" But we have no cloth," said the sailors. 
* Well," said Smith, " I will take my shirt." 

" So will we," said the sailors. 

Soon the sail was patched, and they went 
on. They did not find the ocean. But 
Smith made some good maps. They also 
got corn from the Indians. 

Once the Indians came up to fight Smith. 



58 



CAPTAIN JOHN SMITH 21 

Nearly all his men were sick. So he played 
a trick on the Indians. 

First he got all the sick men out of the 
way. Then he put their hats on sticks. 
This made them look like men. 

When the Indians saw so many hats, they 
were afraid. They shot off their arrows. 
Some of them hit the hats, but did not knock 
them off. 

The Indians said : " Let us run. Our 
arrows do not kill the white men, but their 
guns may kill us." 

Smith and his men were glad to get to 
Jamestown. They found many new people 
there. Another ship had just come over 
from England, 

The people did not like Smith. They 

were very mean to him. 

One day he was out in his boat. Some 

59 



22 CAPTAIN JOHN SMITH 

gunpowder exploded, and he was hurt very 
badly. So he went back to England to get 
well. 

He never saw Jamestown again. 

Smith made another trip to America. 
This time he went farther north. He called 
all the land " New England." 

He did not stay there very long. He 
went back to his old home in England. 

It was there this brave man died. 



60 



STORY OF 
CAPTAIN MILES STANDISH 



61 



THE PILGRIMS IN ENGLAND 



I ONG ago there was a king of England 
^~^ named James. He was king when 
Captain John Smith went to Jamestown. 

The people of England built some very 
fine churches. They burnt hundreds and 
hundreds of candles in them. The min- 
isters were dressed in long rich robes. 

These churches cost a great deal of 
money. All of the people had to pay for 
them. Many were very poor. They did not 
have the money to pay for these fine things. 

Some of the people did not think it was 
right. They said: "We will not go to 
King James' church any more. We will 
have a little church of our own." 

King James did not like this. He said : 

63 



2 CAPTAIN MILES ST AN DISH 

" You must come to my church. You have 
no right to have a church of your own." 
He made a law that all the people must go 
to his church. If they did not he would 
punish them. 

This law frightened the people very much. 
They were afraid he would put them in 
jail. They did not know what to do. They 
did not want to go to King James' church. 
They were afraid to go to their own. 

Some of them said : " We are not afraid 
of the king." 

And they went to their own church any- 
way. 

The king said : I am your king. You 
must do as I say." 

So he punished them. Some were 
whipped. Some were put in jail. Some 
had their houses burned. 

64 



CAPTAIN MILES STAN DISH 3 

Many of these people said : " We can't 
stand this any longer. Let us go to Hol- 
land. There we can do as we please." 

So they sold their homes and were ready 
to go. But King James had been Avatching 
them. He put the people in jail. He 
kept them there a long time. 

When he let them out he said : " Now, 
you may go. But do not try to run away 
again." 



66 



PILGRIMS IN HOLLAND 



" I ^HE next year the people tried again to 
' go to Holland. This time all the men 
were on board the ship. Everything was 
ready to sail. They were waiting for the 
women and children. 

Just then some officers rode up on horse- 
back. The men sailed away, but the 
women and children were taken to jail. 
They were kept there a long time. 

One day the king said : " I will let you 
go, if you will pay me some money." 

But the poor women and children had no 
money. 

Then he said: "I will let you out, if 
you will go to your homes and stay there." 

But they had no homes. By-and-by the 



66 



CAPTAIN MILES ST AN DISH 5 

king grew tired of keeping them. So he 
let them go free. 

Now the poor women and children had a 
hard time. They had no homes, and they 
had no money to pay their way to Holland. 
The king would not help them. 

One day a ship was ready to sail. 

The captain was a kind man, and he was 
sorry for the women and children. So he 
took them on his ship for nothing. When 
they reached Holland, the men were very 
glad to see them. 

These people lived in Holland for about 
ten years. They were very happy. They 
built their own church, and worshipped God 
as they pleased. 

These people were called Pilgrims. 

By-and-by they grew tired of Holland. 
They could not buy any land there. They 

67 



6 CAPTAIN MILES STANDISH 

thought they would go to America. They 
had heard of John Smith and of James- 
town. But they were a Httle afraid of the 
Indians. They talked about it for some 
time. 

Then they said: "Well, we will go to 
America. There we can get plenty of 
land. We can make our homes and build 
our church to please us." 

So they went back to England. Then 
they set sail for America. 

Captain Miles Standish went with them. 
He was not a Pilgrim, but he liked them 
very much. He was very brave, and he 
liked to fight in war. 

The Pilgrims thought he would not be 
afraid of the Indians. 



68 



ON THE SEA. 



" I ^HE Pilgrims left England in a ship 

■ called the Mayflower. 

There were about one hundred people on 
board. The ship was small, and they were 
crowded for room. 

At first the children thought it was great 
fun. They said the ship was as good as a 
swing. They liked it to rock from side to 
side. Sometimes a big wave took them 
away up, and then down, down they would 
come. 

The children laughed and laughed. They 
said : " This is the best fun we ever had. 
Let us live on the ship all the time." 

Miles Standish liked to tease the chil- 
dren. So he said, "Just wait until a big 

69 



8 CAPTAIN MILES STANDISH 

storm comes up. Then it won't be such 
fun." 

But the children only laughed at him. 
They said, " Who's afraid of the storm ? It 
will only make the ship rock better." 

By-and-by a big storm did come up. The 
wind blew and blew. This made the ship 
rock so that all the children got sick. 
They cried to go back home. 

They said, " We don't like this old ship. 
Take us home ! Oh, please take us home !" 

This storm lasted seven days and nights. 
All that time they never saw the sun, 
moon, nor stars. 

But they could see the lightning and 
hear the thunder. They thought they 
would never find America. 

By-and-by the rain stopped and the sun 
came out again. 



CAPTAIN MILES STANDISH 9 

The Pilgrims were on the water for two 
months. Then they saw land. It was 
Cape Cod. 

Cape Cod is a long narrow piece of land 
in Massachusetts. It looks like an arm 
that is bent at the elbow. 

The Pilgrims thought that they would 
find green trees and pretty flowers. But 
all they could see were bare hills, sand, and 
rocks. 

They said : " This is a good place. We 
can have our own land. We can worship 
our God as we please." 

The Mayflower landed on Saturday. 
The next day the Pilgrims stayed on the 
ship. They sang songs and prayed. 



71 



CAUGHT IN THE DEER TRAP. 



^^N Monday morning, Miles Standish 
^*^ went on land. He took some men 
with him. They wanted to find a good 
place to build their houses. 

They had not gone far when they came 
to some soft ground. It looked as if it had 
just been ploughed. 

Miles Standish said, " I wonder what 
made the ground this way." 

The men said : " Something must be 
planted here." 

"No," said Miles Standish, "an Indian 
or a wild animal has made it." 

"Well," said the men, "the best way to 
find out is to look." 



72 



CAPTAIN MILES ST AN DISH ii 

So they dug up the ground. They found 
some Indian baskets. 

"Well, well," said Miles Standish, "this 
is strange." 

"Let us see what is in them," said the 
men. 

So they pulled up the baskets. They 
were full of Indian corn. 

" This is fine," said Standish ; " we can 
take the corn home." 

" No," said the men. " It does not belong 

A. " 

to us. 

" Oh, that is all right," said Standish ; 
"the Indians put the corn here. We can 
pay them when we see them." 

So they went back to the Mayfiower. 
They took all the corn they could carry. 

One day they saw the Indians, and paid 
them for the corn. 

73 



12 CAPTAIN MILES STANDISH 

The men set out again. They soon came 
to a tree. One of its branches was bent 
clear over to the ground. They saw many 
acorns lying under it. 

Miles Standish said : " That is a funny 
tree. I wonder why the limb grew that way." 

One of the men said : " Wait a minute ; I 
want to look at it." 

" No, come on. We have not time to- 
day," said Miles Standish. 

But the man went closer to the tree. He 
walked up and stepped on a branch. 

Suddenly he went flying into the air. 
He hung to the branch by his heels. 

The bent branch was a deer-trap. The 
Indians had fixed it there. The young man 
had put his foot in the trap, and sprung it. 
The limb jerked him up into the tree, but 
he was not hurt. 



CAPTAIN MILES STANDISH 13 

The other men laughed and laughed at 
him. 

Miles Standish said : " Now I guess you 
know why the tree is bent." 

" Yes," said the man, " but I am not a 
deer. Some one come up here, and help 
me get my foot loose." 

So one of the men climbed up in the tree, 
and got the foot out of the trap. Then the 
young man came down. 



HUNTING FOR A HOME 



" I ^HE next day the men went on. They 

■ couldn't find a good place to build 
houses. 

They could see the blue hills some miles 
away. They thought they would go there. 
So they took a boat and started. 

In a few hours it began to snow. The 
men wanted to go back to the Mayflower. 

But Standish said : "No, let us go on; 
the snow will soon stop." 

But it did not stop. It fell faster and 
faster. It was so cold that their coats were 
frozen stiff. 

They went on the land and built up a big 
fire. Then they rolled up some big logs to 
keep the snow off. 

76 



CAPTAIN MILES STAN DISH 15 

In the night they heard a strange noise. 

"What is that?" said the men. 

" I guess it is a wolf," said Standish, 
"but it won't come near the fire." 

One man kept watch. The wolf never 
came back. The rest went to sleep again. 

The next morning the storm was over. 
The men thought they would go on. One 
of the men took the guns down to the boat. 
Then they would be ready to start when 
breakfast was over. 

Pretty soon they heard that same noise 
again. They all stopped to listen. "What 
can it be?" they asked. No one knew. 
Just then a great shower of arrows fell 
upon them. 

" Indians! Indians!" cried the men. 
Then another shower of arrows came 
down. 



77 



i6 CAPTAIN MILES STANDISH 

Some of the men ran for their guns. 
Others held their thick overcoats in front of 
them. 

When their guns came, they fired them 
off as fast as they could. 

The Indians did not like the noise. They 
ran away to the woods. 

One big Indian was braver than the 
rest. He got behind a tree and shot off his 
arrows. 

Miles Standish fired his gun at the 
Indian. The shot struck the tree. Some 
of the branches fell on the Indian's head. 
This frightened him, and he ran away. 

Not one of the white men was hurt. 
But their overcoats were stuck full of 
arrows. One arrow went through the top 
of a man's hat. 

The Pilgrims soon found a good place to 

78 



CAPTAIN MILES STANDISH 17 

build their houses. John Smith had once 
been there. 

They called the place Plymouth, after 
a city in England. Many of the Pilgrims 
had lived there. 

Miles Standish said : " I think this is a 
good place." 

"Yes," said the men ; " the Mayflower can 
land here. There is a good spring of 
water over there." 

They could see some corn-fields, too. 
Some Indians had been there, but had gone 
away. 

Then the men went back to the ship. 
When the Mayflower sailed around to Ply- 
mouth, it stopped near a big rock. Each 
Pilgrim stepped from the ship on this rock. 

So they called it Plymouth Rock. 



79 



SAMOSET VISITS THE PILGRIMS 



" I ^HE Pilgrims set to work to build houses. 

■ Some of the men went into the woods 
to cut down trees. Some planted corn. The 
women and children worked too. They 
carried the water, built the fires, and got 
the dinners. 

The men made rough houses out of logs. 
They used oiled paper for the windows. 

The weather was very cold. The ground 
was covered with snow and ice. 

The people did not have much to eat. 
Many of them were sick, and some of them 
died. 

Miles Standish was not sick. He helped 
every one. He took care of the sick. 

80 . 



CAPTAIN MILES STAN DISH 19 

Sometimes he washed their clothes and 
cooked for them. 

By-and-by the warm days came. The 
sun shone, and every one was better. The 
corn grew, and they had plenty to eat. 
Now the Pilgrims were very happy. 

All this time they had not seen any Indians. 

One day the men were at work in the 
woods. They saw some one coming down 
the hill. . 

" Who is that ?" said one of the men. 

" Oh, one of our men," said Standish. 

So they went on with their work. 

By-and-by, they heard some one say : 
"Welcome, Englishmen! Welcome, Eng- 
lishmen ! " 

They looked up and saw an Indian. 

The men said : " Hello, where did you 
come from ? " 



20 CAPTAIN MILES STANDISH 

The Indian said : " I am Samoset. I live 
in the next Indian village. I came to see 
the white men." 

Standish said : " Who taught you to speak 
English?" 

Samoset said: " Oh, a long time ago 
some sailors came over from England. I 
talk as they did." 

The Pilgrims were very kind to Samoset. 
They gave him a coat to wear. 

By-and-by it grew dark. They thought 
it was time for him to go home. 

But Samoset said : " Samoset likes the 
white people. He will stay all night." 

The Pilgrims did not want him to stay, 
but they were afraid to tell him so. So 
they made him a bed. Some one watched 
him all night. They thought that he might 
kill them when they were asleep. 



CAPTAIN MILES STAN DISH 2\ 

The next morning, Samoset went home. 

Standish said: "Good -by, Samoset; 
come and see us again." 

" All right, I will," said Samoset. " Next 
time I will bring some other Indians with 
me." 

" Tell them to bring some skins and furs, 
then we can trade with them," said Standish. 

" What will you trade ? " said Samoset. 

" Oh, we have knives, beads, rinofs 
chains, and lots of things," said Standish. 

" Let me see them. Show them to me," 
said Samoset. So the Pilofrims showed all 
the thinofs to him. 

"I like the white people," said Samoset. 
" Won't you give me a knife ? " 

So they gave him a knife, a ring, and a 
bracelet. Then he went away. 



83 



SQUANTO AND MASSASOIT 



" I ^HE next day, Samoset came back. He 
* brought five Indians with him. They 
were very tall, and had some skins across 
their backs. 

Samoset came first. He left the others 
on the hill. 

He said to the Pilgrims : " Good-morning, 
white people. We have come to trade." 

Standish said : "The Indians must leave 
their bows and arrows on the hill. Then 
they may come to see us." 

Samoset went back to the hill. He 
told the Indians to put down their bows 
and arrows. Then they marched to the 
town. 

Samoset said : " Here are some skins. 
Now, give us some knives." 

84 



CAPTAIN MILES ST AN DISH 



-j> 



But it was Sunday, and the Pilgrims 
would not trade on Sunday. 

So Standish said : " We cannot trade 
to-day. Come back to-morrow." 

" We want to stay here," said Samoset. 
"We are too tired to otq." 

"Well," said Standish, "stay and eat 
dinner with us. Then you can rest." 

The Indians were glad to stay. They 
sanof and danced for the Pilofrims. 

When it was dark, the Indians started 
home. Standish ofave each of them a knife. 
Just then Samoset began to cry. 

" What is the matter?" asked Standish. 

Samoset said : " Oh, I am so sick ! I 
can't go home. I will stay all night with 
the white people." 

The Pilgrims did not believe him. They 
thought he was only playing sick. 



85 



24 CAPTAIN MILES STANDISH 

But they said : " That is all right, Samo- 
set. You may stay with us." 

Samoset stayed three days. When he 
went away they gave him a hat, a pair of 
shoes, and a shirt. 

The next day he came back again. This 
time he had another Indian with him. His 
name was Squanto. 

Squanto could speak English also. 

They talked to the Pilgrims for a long 
time. They told them about the Indians 
who lived near Plymouth. 

Standish said : " Who is the chief of all 
these Indians ?" 

" Mas.sasoit," said Squanto. 

"Will he fiorht us?" asked Standish. 

"No," said Squanto, "he likes the 
white people. He will come to see you 
to-morrow." 



CAPTAIN MILES STANDISH 25 

The next day, Massasoit came to see the 
Pilgrims. 

He brought sixty Indians with him. 

The Pilgrims were afraid of so many 
Indians. But Miles Standish said : " I will 
ofo to meet Massasoit, and take him some 
presents. Then he will not hurt us." 

He walked up to Massasoit, and said : 
" Welcome, Chief. We are glad to see 
you." 

Then he gave him a red coat, two knives, 
and a chain. Massasoit was very proud of 
these presents. 

He left the Indians on the hill, and went 
with Standish to see the Pilgrims. 

Massasoit talked with them for a long 
time. When he went away, he said : 
" Good-by, white people, we will always 
be friends." 

87 



26 CAPTAIN MILES STAN DISH 

"All right," said the Pilgrims ; "you help 
us and we will help you." 

Massasoit said: " That will be good. 
Then the white men and the Indians will 
be brothers." 



THE FIRST THANKSGIVING 



" I ^HE Pilgrims were now very happy. 
■ The days were warm. Every one was 
well. They had good homes and plenty of 
corn. The Indians were friendly. 

They said : " Let us thank God. He has 
made the sun shine and the rain fall. We 
are all well, and our corn has grown." 

So they thought they would have a 
Thanksgiving party. 

Miles Standish said : " Yes, let us have a 
party, and invite all the Indians." 

The children thought it would be fine to 
have a party. They said : " We will in- 
vite all the little Indians, too." 

So they got up a big dinner. They had 
roast turkey and pumpkin pies. The In- 



2B CAPTAIN MILES STANDISM 

dians brought fresh fish from the sea, and 
wild ducks and geese. 

Massasoit arid the Indians were all dressed 
up. They had their faces painted. They 
wore feathers and fox-tails in their hair. 
The children played in the fields and had a 
fine time. They wanted to have a party 
every day. 

Now, every year we have a Thanksgiving 
day. 



The rattlesnake skin 



" 1 ^HE Indians in the next village to Mas- 

* sasoit's did not like the white people. 
The chief thought he would frighten them. 
So he sent them a bundle of sharp arrows. 
The arrows were tied with a rattlesnake skin. 

That meant that he dared the white men 
to come out and fiofht them. 

The Pilgrims threw away the arrows and 
filled the skin with powder and shot. Then 
they sent it to the chief. 

This meant that the white people were 
not afraid to touch the skin. 

The chief said : " Throw it away ! Throw 
it away ! Guns make a loud noise. They 
hurt worse than our arrows." 

91 



30 CAPTAIN MILES STANDISH 

The Pilgrims thought the Indians might 
fight them. So they built a high fence 
around Plymouth. Then they built a fort 
on top of the hill, and put three guns 
there. 

They used the lower part of the fort for 
a church. Every Sunday all the Pilgrims 
went to church. Brave Miles Standish 
marched ahead. Each man had a gun. 
When they were in the church, one man on 
the outside watched. 

They listened to hear him cry, " Indians ! 
Indians ! " But the Indians did not come. 

By-and-by some more people came from 
England. They went to live a few miles 
north of Plymouth. The Indians did not 
like these people. They said they would 
kill them all. 

Miles Standish said he would go and help 

92 



CAPTAIN MILES STANDISH 31 

the white people. So he took a few men 
and went up there. 

One big Indian walked up to Standish. 
He looked at him for a long time. 

Then the Indian said : " What ! are you 
the man who has come to kill us ? " 

" Yes, I am the man," said Standish. 

The Indian laughed, and then he said : 
" You are too little. Nobody is afraid of 
you. Why don't you fight with the 
women ? " 

This made Standish angry. His face got 
very red. He went right up to the big 
Indian, and said : " I may be little, but I 
am not afraid of you. I will show you how 
I can fight." 

The next day they did have a fight. The 
big Indian was killed, but little Miles Stan- 
dish was not even hurt. 

93 



32 CAPTAIN MILES STAN DISH 

Miles Standish could do more than fight. 
He helped the Pilgrims in many ways. 

He went up and down the coast, and 
traded with the Indians. 

Then he went back to Engrland, and not 
money and goods for the Pilgrims. 

He lived to be an old, old man. His 
home was on a high hill, called Captain's 
Hill. 

When he died they buried him on this 
hill. 

The Pilgrims put up a stone one hundred 
feet high over his grave. 

On it is a statue of brave Miles Standish. 
It is looking toward his old home in 
England. 



94 



STORY OF 
BENJAMIN FRANKLIN 



95 



BEN'S BOAT 



IWI ANY years ago there was a little 
' * boy named Benjamin Franklin. His 
home was in the city of Boston. 

Ben's father was very poor. He had a 
shop, and made soap and candles. 

He sent Ben to school for two years. 
Then he said : " Ben, you must go to work. 
I cannot send you to school any longer." 

"What can I do?" asked Ben. 

''You must help me," said his father; 
" you can cut the wicks and keep the shop." 

Ben said to himself: "Now, I'll have to 
work all the time. I know I won't like it. 
It is more fun to go down to the river with 
the other boys. There I can row a boat 
sometimes." 

97 



2 BENJAMIN FRANKLIN 

But he told his father he would help him. 

One day his father gave him some wicks 
to cut. His father said : " Take these 
wicks, Ben. Go into the work-room. I 
will call you when I want you." 

So Ben took the wicks and went away. 
It was a very warm day. He did not want 
to work. He said : "I will play a while. 
Then I will cut the wicks." 

He thouofht he would make a boat. 

So he took an old stool and turned it 
upside down. He used a broomstick for 
the mast. An old towel was tied to it for a 
sail. 

" It must have a name," said Ben. 

So on one side he painted in big black 
letters, 

The Flying Dutchman 
Boston. 



BENJAMIN FRANKLIN 3 

" Now," said Ben, " this is a fine boat. I 
will sail it on the river." 

Just then his father called : " Ben, bring 
the wicks." 

But Ben did not hear him. His father 
called again, this time a little louder : 

" Ben ! oh, Ben ! bring the wicks ! " 

Still Ben did not hear. 

" Where is that boy ?" said his father ; " I 
must look for him." 

So he went into the work-room. There 
on the floor sat little Ben. The boat was 
in front of him. He was making wooden 
sailors to go in the boat. 

'' Ben," said his father, "where are those 
wicks ? " 

"Wicks!" said Ben. "Oh, I forgot all 

about them. See my boat. Isn't it a fine 

one?" 

99 



4 BENJAMIN FRANKLIN 

"Yes," said his father; "but the next 
time do your work first. Then you can 
play." 

So Ben set to work. In a little time the 
wicks were cut. Then he took his boat and 
went down to the river. He sailed his boat 
for a long time. 



100 



BUILDING THE WHARF 



^^g^ EN'S home was near a pond. Ben and 
'■^ some other boys used to go there to 
fish. The ground was soft, and they had to 
stand in the mud. The boys did not Hke 
the mud ; but they wanted to fish. They 
did not know what to do. 

By and by, Ben thought of a plan. He 
said : " Boys, I know how we can get rid of 
this mud." 

" How ? How ? " cried they. 

" Oh, you must guess," said Ben. 

" I know," said one ; " you want us to put 
a board over the mud." 

" No," said Ben, "that isn't it." 

Another boy said : " We can cover the 
mud with sand." 

101 



6 BENJAMIN FRANKLIN 

Ben shook his head. 

" Tell us," said the boys, " we can't guess." 

"Well," said Ben, "let us build a wharf." 

"We can't," said the boys, "we haven't 
any stones." 

Ben said : " Don't you see that big pile of 
stones over there ? We can use them." 

" All right," said the boys ; " let us go to 
work." 

" No," said Ben : "the men won't let us 
have them. But come to-ni^ht after dark. 
We will carry them over here. Then we 
will make them into a wharf." 

" Hurrah ! we will do it," said the boys. 

Then they went home. When it was 
dark they came back to the pond. 

They all set to work. The stones were 
big and heavy. Sometimes it would take 
two of them to carry one stone. 

102 



BENJAMIN FRANKLIN 7 

The boys grew tired, but they did not 
stop. By-and-by the wharf was done. 

'' Now, boys," said Ben, "let us give three 
cheers, and go home to bed. To-morrow 
it will be fine fun to fish." 

The boys waved their hats and cried: 
" Hurrah ! hurrah ! hurrah ! " 

Then they all went home. They were so 
happy they did not sleep much that night. 

The next morning the workmen could 
not find their stones. 

They said : " This is strange. The stones 
could not walk or fly away. Some one 
must have taken them." 

They looked and looked, but they could 
not find them. 

Pretty soon they saw some footprints. 
They followed them down to the pond. 
There they saw the new wharf. 

103 



8 BENJAMIN FRANKLIN 

" Those are our stones," said the men. 
"Yes," said one, "the boys will soon come 
to fish. Let us wait for them." 

In a little while the boys came. They 
were laughing and talking. They had their 
fishing-poles in their hands. 

" Hello !" said the men, " that is a fine 
wharf ; but where did you get the stones ? " 

"In the fields," said the boys. 

" Well," said the men, " they belong to 
us. You must carry them all back." 

" But," said the boys, " we need the 
wharf." 

" And we need the stones," said the men. 

So the poor boys set to work. They car- 
ried the stones back, one by one. 

That night Ben's father said : " Why did 
you take the stones ? They did not belong 
to you.'' 

104 



BENJAMIN FRANKLIN 9 

" We thought it was a good thing to make 
the wharf. We didn't like to stand in the 
mud," said Ben. 

But his father said : " No, my boy, noth- 
ing is good that isn't honest." 



105 



BEN LEARNS TO READ 



%0 EN liked to read. He read all of his 
*"^ father's books. Then he sold some 
of his playthings to buy more. 

One day his uncle gave him " Robinson 
Crusoe" to read. 

Ben thought it was a fine book. He 
wanted to read it all the time. 

His mother told him to put away his 
book and do his work. 

But Ben said : " Oh, mother, just let me 
read one more page ! " 

Then when that page was read, he would 
say : " Just one more page." 

Pretty soon his father came home, He 
found the work not done. This made him 



106 



BENJAMIN FRANKLIN n 

very angry. He sent Ben to bed without 
any supper. 

The next morning he called Ben to him 
and said : " You do not like the shop, so 
you may work for your brother." 

This made Ben very happy. This 
brother had a printing-office. Ben thought 
he could have plenty of books to read. 

He went to work the next day. He took 
paper to the book-stores. The men in the 
stores loaned him books. 

He kept them nice and clean. He 
always took them back the next day. 
Sometimes he sat up all night to read one 
through. 

One day Ben said : "I wish these books 
were mine." 

" Why don't you buy them ?" said the 
man. 



107 



12 BENJAMIN FRANKLIN 

But Ben had no money. He wondered 
how he could make some. 

By-and-by he thought of a plan. He 
did not eat any meat. He saved that 
money to buy books. 

Ben's brother printed a newspaper. One 
time Ben wrote some stories for it. He 
was afraid to tell his brother. He thought 
he would laugh at him. So he put them 
under the door at nigfht. 

The next morning his brother found the 
stories. He read them over and over. 

Then he said : " These are fine stories. 
I wonder who wrote them ? " 

Ben's face got redder and redder. But 
he only said : " Will you print them ? " 

"Yes," said his brother, "and then you 
can sell them." 

When they were printed Ben put them 

108 



BENJAMIN FRANKLIN 13 

into a basket. He went up and down the 
street crying : " Buy my stories ! Who will 
buy my stories ? Only one cent, only one 
cent !" 

He sold them all. Then he told his 
brother that he wrote them. This made 
his brother angry. 

After that he was very mean to Ben. 
Sometimes he whipped him. 

Ben did not want to stay with his brother 
any longer. He said he would go away. 
He thought he could find work in some 
other town. 



109 



BEN GOES TO PHILADELPHIA 



^^NE night Ben went away. It was dark 
^*^ and the wind blew. But Ben was not 
afraid. He thought that he would have a 
good time. 

First he went on board of a boat. He 
sold some of his books to pay his way. 

The next day a big storm came up. The 
wind blew and blew. The sails were torn 
and the boat had to land. 

Ben had no place to go, so he stayed on 
the boat. He made his bed in a corner. 
That night the waves dashed all over him. 

The next morning the sun came out. 
Ben dried his clothes. Then he set out to 
walk to the next town. 

Soon it beofan to rain. Poor Ben ofot all 

110 



BENJAMIN FRANKLIN 15 

wet aofain. His clothes were covered with 
red mud. 

He walked on and on. Still there was 
no town. He thousfht it must be miles and 
miles away. 

But by-and-by he came to a city. It was 
Philadelphia. 

Poor Ben was tired and hungry. One 
silver dollar was all the money he had. 

He thought he would get something to 
eat. So he walked up and down the street. 
He looked into all the windows. 

Pretty soon he came to a baker's shop. 
Some cakes and rolls were in the window. 

" Now," said Ben, " I will have some. 
Those rolls look fine." 

He went into the shop, and bought three 

large rolls. He put one under each arm. 

He ate the other as he walked alone. 

111 



1 6 BENJAMIN FRANKLIN 

Ben looked very funny. His clothes 
were all covered with mud. His pockets 
stood out on each side. He had put his 
clean shirt and stockings into them, 

Ben saw a large white house. He 
stopped to look at it. He thought he 
would like to live there. 

Just then a young girl came out. She 
saw Ben at the gate. She laughed and 
laughed at him. Then she called to her 
mother : " Do look at this funny boy ! I am 
sure he has been robbing the baker's shop." 

Her mother laughed too. " Yes," she 
said, "he has his arms and pockets full." 

Ben knew they were laughing at him. 
But he did not care. He knew that he 
looked funny. 

Many years after, Franklin married this 

same girl. 
113 



FRANKLIN THE PRINTER 



^ I ^HE next day, Franklin looked for work. 

' He walked up and down the street. 
He wanted to find a printing-office. 

By-and-by he saw one. He went in and 
asked for work. 

" Who are you ?" said the man. 

" My name is Franklin, and I live in 
Boston. I worked in a printing-office there," 
he said. 

The man shook his head. He did not 
want to give him work. 

But Franklin said : '' Please let me 
try. Then if you do not like me I will go 
away." 

" All right," said the man, " you may go 
to work now." 



113 



1 8 BENJAMIN FRANKLIN 

He worked hard all day and late every 
niQrht. 

The men in the office said : " Who is this 
young man ? He works so hard. His wo.rk 
is better than ours." 

Every one spoke about his good work. 

One day the Governor came to see him. 
He said : " You are the best printer here. 
Why don't you set up an office of your 
own .'' 

" I wouldlike to," said Franklin, " but I 
have no money." 

"Won't your father help you?" said the 
Governor. 

" I do not like to ask him," said Franklin. 

" I will write to your father," said the 
Governor, " and ask him to help you." 

The Governor wrote the letter. But Ben's 
father did not send any money. 

114 



BENJAMIN FRANKLIN 19 

So Ben went back to Boston. He did 
not look like the boy who ran away. 

He wore a nice new suit, and carried a 
silver watch. This time he had more than 
one silver dollar in his pocket. 

His father and mother were very glad to 
see him. 

But his father said : " You must wait 
a while ; you are too young to have a print- 
ing-office of your own." 

Ben stayed at home for a few days. Then 
he went back to Philadelphia. 

The Governor came to see him aeain. 
He said : " Well, will your father help you ? " 

" No," said Franklin ; " he says I am too 
young." 

Then the Governor said : " I will help you. 
I will lend you the money. But you 
must go to London to buy the press." 

115 



20 BENJAMIN FRANKLIN 

So Franklin crossed the ocean to London. 

But the Governor did not send the money. 
Franklin waited and waited for it. But it 
never came. 

In a little while he found work in a print- 
ing-office. 

The men in the office drank a great deal 
of beer. They wanted Franklin to drink it, 
too. But he said : " No, water is better." 

Then the men made fun of him. Frank- 
lin did not care for that. 

One day they said : " Beer makes us 
strong. We can do more work than you can." 

" Well, let us see," said Franklin. 

A large bundle of papers was at the foot 
of the stairs. 

The men said: " This is good. We will 
carry this paper upstairs. The one who 
takes up the most is the strongest." 



116 



BENJAMIN FRANKLIN 2\ 

So they all set to work. The paper was 
heavy, and it took them a long time. 

By-and-by it was done. And Franklin 
beat them all. 

He carried up three times as much as any 
one of them did. 

The men did not like this. They said : 
" Well, anyway we can beat you swimming." 

"All right," said Franklin, "we will see." 

That day they went down to the river 
They were in the water for a long time. 
Franklin could swim longer and faster than 
any of them. 

" Why," said the men, " you can swim as 
fast as a fish." 

Franklin laughed at them. He said : 
"Yes, that is because I drink nothing but 
water." 

The men did not laugh at him any more. 



22 BENJAMIN FRANKLIN 

Franklin did not stay in London very 
long. He went back to Philadelphia. 

There he set up a newspaper of his own. 
He worked hard, and tried to make it a 
good one. 

But some men did not like it. They 
said : " Your paper does not please us. We 
will not take it any more." 

Franklin only said : " Come to-night and 
take supper with me." 

The men were glad to go. They thought 
they would have something nice to eat. 

All they had was corn-meal mush and 
water. 

The men did not like the mush. They 
did not eat it; but Franklin ate all of his. 

Then he said : " Do you not like my 
paper ? " 

" No," said the men, " you must change it." 

118 



BENJAMIN FRANKLIN 23 

" It is a good paper ; I will not change 
it," said Franklin, 

" Well," said the men, " we will not take 
it any more." 

" All right," said Franklin, "do not take it. 
I do not need your help. I can live on 
mush and water." 

The men did not say anything more 
about the paper. 



119 



FRANKLIN^S KITE 



FRANKLIN helped the people in many 
ways. But he did one thing the best 
of all. It made every one in the whole 
world know him. 

The people then did not know much 
about electricity. Franklin thought that it 
was the same as the lightning in the sky. 

Where he lived the lightning did much 
harm. It set houses on fire, and killed 
people. 

" Now," said Franklin, " I must get some 
lightning." 

He thought and thought about it for 
a long time. But he did not know what 
to do. 

Then he said : " If I had some kind of a 
trap, I could catch some lightning," 

120 



BENJAMIN FRANKLIN 25 

So he made a kite out of a silk handker- 
chief. He put a sharp iron point on one 
stick of the kite. 

Then he tied a key to the end of the silk 
string. 

One day a big storm came up. He could 
see the lightning and hear the thunder. 

This made Franklin happy. Now he 
could try his kite. 

He was afraid it would not fly. But it 
went up, up into the sky. 

Franklin watched it for a long time. Then 
he saw little threads stand out on the string-- 

He held his hand near the key, and felt 
the electricity. 

Then he went home. He knew that 
lightning was the same as electricity. 

" Now," said Franklin, " I know what will 

be better than a kite. I will put a tall iron 

121 



26 BENJAMIN FRANKLIN 

rod on my house. It will take the electric- 
ity from the sky." 

So he put up a rod on his house. All 
the people thought that it was very strange 
to put an iron rod on a house. 

They said: "Why did you do that? 
What is the rod for ? " 

" It will keep my house from burning," 
said Franklin. 

** How can it do that ? " said the 
people. 

" It will take the lightning from the sky," 
said Franklin. 

But the people did not believe him. 

By-and-by a storm came up. The sky 
was full of lightning. 

Many houses were burned. Some people 
were killed. 

Franklin's house was not hurt. Then the 

122 



BENJAMIN FRANKLIN 27 

people said : " Well, the rod did keep the 
lightning away." 

So they all put rods on their houses, too. 
Then the lightning could not set them on 
fire. 



123 



HELPING HIS COUNTRY 



'TV T this time a war broke out. The 
' *■ people in America had to fight for 
our country. 

FrankHn did not fight, but he helped in 
other ways. 

One time we had no money to pay our 
soldiers. 

" What shall we do ? " said the people. 

Franklin said : " I will go to France and 
ask the king to help us," 

So he went across the big ocean. He 
went to see the kings and queens of many 
lands. He asked them to help our soldiers. 

The king of France gave him money for 
them. Then they could buy food to eat, 
and clothes to keep them warm. 

124 



BENJAMIN FRANKLIN 29 

He also sent some ships and some soldiers 
to help in the fight. 

Before Franklin came home, he was taken 
sick in France. 

The queen of France felt sorry for him. 
So she sent him down to the wharf in her 
own carriage. 

When he reached home everybody was 
glad to see him. 

Every one loved him. He had done so 
much for his country. 

He lived to see America free. Then he 
was taken sick. 

Soon the kind eyes were shut lorever. 
Franklin was dead. 



125 



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